Chapter 68: Except For You... Nothing Else Matters!
Lufia's enraged fist smashed toward Arlong's face!
But Arlong's reaction was astonishingly fast.
He didn't dodge.
Instead, he opened his mouth—
Filled with sharp teeth as pointed as barbed hooks.
"Crunch!"
He bit down on Lufia's fist!
Not catching it, but biting it!
The sharp teeth sank deep into her rubber skin, like barbs, locking in place!
Lufia's expression changed as she tried to pull her fist back with all her strength.
But the more she pulled, the deeper the teeth dug in!
Excruciating pain!
Yet Lufia endured it without making a sound.
She swung her other fist, continuing to pummel Arlong's face!
But Arlong had been waiting for this moment!
He suddenly spun around, dragging Lufia with him, and leaped into the pool!
"Splash—!"
Water sprayed everywhere.
Once in the water, Arlong was in his element.
His strength and speed instantly surged!
He kept Lufia's fist locked in his teeth, dragging her entire body to the bottom of the pool!
The pool connected directly to the sea.
Seawater flooded Lufia's mouth and nose.
This was the weakness of Devil Fruit users—they couldn't swim.
"Gurgle, gurgle..."
Bubbles escaped from her mouth.
Her eyes began to roll back, and her struggles grew weaker.
Within seconds, she lost consciousness.
Just then—
"This is Navy Branch 77! We are conducting a rescue operation in Cocoyasi Village!"
A broadcast voice echoed from the sea's surface.
"Members of the Arlong Pirates, we advise you to surrender immediately! The previous two cannon shots were only warnings! Otherwise, we will launch an attack!"
Arlong surfaced, glaring at the distant silhouette of the Navy warship.
"Navy Branch 77?" He sneered. "Quite polite. Unfortunately... I'm in a foul mood and have no time to chat with you!"
He turned and shouted to Hachi and Kuroobi, who were fighting on the shore:
"Hachi! Kuroobi! Deal with that warship!"
Arlong pointed at Sanji and Zoro on the shore:
"These two... I'll handle them myself."
Sanji's kicks clashed with Kuroobi's Fish-man Karate.
The Fish-man's strength was indeed formidable, each punch carrying immense force.
But Sanji merely wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and smirked:
"Fish-Man Karate? ... Old man Zeff's kicks pack way more power than yours!"
After gauging Kuroobi's strength, Sanji quickly found his rhythm.
Counterattack!
"Shoulder Meat!"
"Back Meat!"
"Thigh Meat!"
A barrage of kicks, like a storm!
Kuroobi was forced to retreat step by step.
Meanwhile—
Zoro had earlier found two decorative longswords on the walls of Arlong Park.
Though not as comfortable as his own blades, they at least completed the set of three.
The Three Sword Style could now be unleashed.
"Three Sword Style: Tora Gari!"
The blade light surged like a tiger, pouncing on Hachi!
Even with six swords, Hachi was no match for Zoro.
"Clang, clang, clang, clang—!"
The sound of metal clashing was as dense as rain.
Hachi's six swords were—knocked away one by one.
As the last sword flew from his grasp, Zoro's blade was already pressed against his neck.
"You lose," Zoro said.
Tears welled in Hachi's round eyes: "Wah... My Six Sword Style... How could a Fish-man's swordsmanship lose to a human's?"
Just then, Arlong's command reached them.
Hachi and Kuroobi exchanged a glance and nodded simultaneously.
Abandoning their fights, they leaped into the pool and swam toward the distant warship.
Extremely fast, like torpedoes.
Zoro sheathed his swords and looked at Sanji:
"I'll go get Lufia. You hold off Arlong."
Sanji nodded: "Understood."
The two leaped into the pool simultaneously.
Zoro swung his sword at Arlong, but underwater, his speed slowed considerably.
Meanwhile, Arlong's speed surged dramatically!
He shot forward like a harpoon!
"Shark on Darts!"
Arlong's pointed nose, sharp as a spearhead, stabbed directly into Zoro's shoulder, blood gushing out.
With a flick of his nose, Arlong flung Zoro completely out of the water!
Then, a punch!
"Bam!"
A solid punch landed squarely on Zoro's bandaged abdomen!
"Urgh—!"
Zoro was sent flying backward, crashing through a wall and buried beneath the rubble.
On the other side, Sanji had just lifted Lufia from the bottom of the pool.
He saw Arlong floating menacingly on the water's surface, watching him.
"Humans are so fragile..." Arlong mocked, "Can't even breathe underwater."
Gritting his teeth, Sanji held the unconscious Lufia and desperately swam toward the shore.
But Arlong moved.
He leaped up, then plunged into the water like a torpedo!
"Boom—!!!"
A massive spray erupted!
A water column shot skyward!
As the spray settled.
Arlong stepped slowly out of the pool.
In his left hand, he held the unconscious Lufia; in his right, the equally unconscious Sanji.
Their bodies hung limply, like dead fish.
And at that moment—
"Arlong—!!!"
A furious roar came from the direction of the park's entrance.
Ralph, Usopp, and the villagers of Cocoyasi Village surged in.
They froze at the scene before them.
Fish-man corpses littered the ground.
Collapsed buildings.
And... Lufia and Sanji held in Arlong's hands.
Plus, Zoro buried under rubble, unknown if dead or alive.
Arlong looked at these villagers, at their "weapons"—kitchen knives, pitchforks, wooden sticks.
He laughed.
An arrogant, mocking laugh.
"Thinking of rebelling? Resisting?" Arlong's voice echoed through the courtyard, "You inferior race!"
He pointed toward the distant sea.
There, a massive whirlpool was forming.
The Navy warship that had just been hailing them was struggling in the vortex, then was swallowed.
Vanished.
"See?" Arlong's voice rose, "Before the power of fish-men, even the Navy's warships are so helpless!"
He pointed again at Lufia and Sanji in his hands:
"And this—is the fate of those who dare defy me!"
Arlong roared at the sky:
"We fish-men are the greatest race in the world! We fish-men—are invincible!!!"
Fear.
Like an icy tide, washed over the villagers.
Their hands gripping weapons began to tremble.
The fire in their eyes was replaced by terror.
Years of psychological trauma were infinitely magnified in this moment.
Even the Navy had been defeated...
Even these seemingly strong outsiders had been defeated...
Could they... really resist?
In this dead, hopeless moment—
A flash of white light appeared in the courtyard.
Faint, swift.
Like an illusion.
But everyone saw it.
Ralph's figure had somehow appeared beside Arlong.
The ordinary Cutlass at his waist.
Previously always sheathed, never drawn.
Was now slowly sliding back into its scabbard.
"Clink."
A faint metallic friction sound.
Then, Ralph reached out and gently took the unconscious Lufia from Arlong's hands.
Arlong... showed no reaction whatsoever.
He remained standing there, his left hand still holding the "lifting" posture, though it was now empty.
Ralph laid Lufia flat on the ground and began performing CPR.
Chest compressions.
Mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
As if Arlong didn't exist at all.
As if the surrounding villagers, the corpses littering the ground, the whirlpool on the distant sea surface... none of it existed.
What he was doing was the most important thing to him.
Saving his captain, saving the person who mattered most to him.
Witnessing this scene, Johnny and Yosaku trembled with excitement.
"It's appeared..." Johnny murmured to himself.
"Big Brother Ralph's Nameless Sword Style..." Yosaku continued, his voice filled with awe.
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